


Help Me Hold On To You

by dulcehernandez



Category: Open Heart (Visual Novels)
Genre: F/M, Family, Hurt/Comfort, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:26:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,429
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24786925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dulcehernandez/pseuds/dulcehernandez
Summary: Ethan's mother returns.
Relationships: Ethan Ramsey/Main Character (Open Heart), Ethan Ramsey/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 17





	Help Me Hold On To You

Ethan and his lover were walking hands interlocked outside of Derry Roasters during their lunch break. It was a crisp autumn day in Boston and the trees were slowly turning colors. When they walked with their hands interlocked, they occasionally stepped on fallen leaves. As she sipped from her Espresso Romano, she couldn't help but giggle at the sight of Ethan gulping down his extra large Vienna coffee. 

“ _I don’t know why you don’t get something stronger, baby. The drink is obviously not hitting the spot anymore._ ”

He grinned at her remark, “ _Quite simple, I have an excuse to come back when I need to get away from the hospital and I get to bring my beautiful girlfriend along._ ”

Ethan had never been a fan of public displays of affection but she had managed to change his opinion on all of the things he once thought were unwavering. He tenderly cupped her face and kissed her with such importance that it felt like they were the only people in the world. Ethan had dreamed about the moments in between for longer than he had been willing to admit even to her. As they kissed on the sidewalk with a rotating audience of pedestrians and Edenbrook nurses, she couldn’t help but smile as their lips brushed upon the other. It was moments like these that felt like the universe had conspired in their favor and allowed their paths to grow. 

“ _I love you so much_ ” she whispered. His heart skipped a beat as he saw her eyes were filled with a mix of wonder and adoration. His relationship despite being fairly new, made him feel safe for he knew how unconditional their love for the other was. 

As a smile grew on his face, he divulged, “ _I don’t know what I did to deserve you._ ” As they were about to go in for another kiss, a voice in the near distance seized their attention from the intimate moment they were about to share. 

“ _Ethan_ ” while she did not instantly recognize the voice of the source, she saw the man she loved uncharacteristically freeze up. As her head swiftly turned behind her, she recognized the woman behind them as Ethan's estranged mother. Although she had met her briefly once, upon further inspection she recognized how strikingly similar the mother and son were. 

“ _I don’t have anything to say to you_.” he harshly rebuked before allowing the older woman to speak. When the woman recognized that Ethan was going to be a difficult entry point to crack she surveyed the young doctor and inquired, " _We met before at the convenience store before. It’s nice to see you again. Such a small world, isn’t it?_ "

Before assembling a response she felt Ethan grip her hand possessively as if he was leaning on her in order not to collapse. He began pulling her towards the hospital indicating that he wanted to leave. Ethan protested any further interaction and harshly looked down on his mother, " _Don’t talk to her. Don’t look at her. I want you to stay out of our lives._ " She saw Ethan’s mother flinch with remorse coloring her face. She cupped Ethan’s face tenderly and murmured, " _I think you should talk to her. One conversation and she'll be gone forever_. _You both need these more than you realize_." Ethan's face met hers with hesitance but her words gave him the confidence to push himself and agreed to the meeting.

" _Do you want me to go with you?_ "

" _I think this is something I need to do alone._ " She was hesitant but nodded as he walked away from her, she couldn’t help but wonder what was going to be said or unsaid. 

Ethan screened all her calls and didn't show up to work for the following two days. She had to field questions about his whereabouts from Naveen, June and Baz despite not knowing herself. Although lying about his whereabouts was an attempt to protect his privacy in a difficult time, it would be untrue to deny that it was also to protect her ego. It physically pained her to feel like her boyfriend didn't trust her enough to let her into help him fight through this difficult moment. Her days were busy balancing the clinic, her intern, the diagnostics team, and her individual patients, but it was Ethan who was clouding her thoughts every waking moment. She hadn't felt this distanced from him since he abruptly quit and went radio silent when they were working together on Naveen's case. Guilt was weighing her down and she wondered if she shouldn't have encouraged the meeting between Ethan and his mother. Perhaps if she had insisted on being with him to hold him close.

That night, as she laid in bed trying to get through a medical journal, she heard a creek coming from her door. Despite her room being virtually dark save for her nightstand lamp, she would have recognized Ethan silhouette anywhere he manifested. He was wearing a light blue dress shirt and the first couple of buttons were undone. His hair looked unkept and his stubble had grown in the two days she hadn't seen him. He remained quiet and threw himself wearily on her queen sized bed. He rested his head on her lap and she began to run her fingers through his hair. He felt himself melt into her and for the first time in 48 hours, he felt like he could breathe. Correspondingly, she felt her whole body go at ease at his body returned to her. Even in difficult moments, it was clear that they were in sync. 

" _No texts, no calls..._ " She felt her voice tremble for she knew there was a fine line between reprimanding him for his actions and supporting him through his healing. 

He sighed deeply, his breath reeking of scotch, " _You know I hate texting._ " He sounded brittle and vulnerable and it made her heart ache. 

" _I do. You also know that I hate when you don't let me in, Ethan. All I've ever asked is for you to let me be there for you. I understand your need to be alone, but you don’t have to bask in your sadness by yourself, not anymore at least. You have me._ " 

" _It's not your responsibility to take care of me because I have abandonment issues_." 

She sighed, " _We're in a relationship. I want to be there for you. The highs and the lows._ " 

He rubbed his eyes and remained silent attempting to process his next move. 

_"I wrote her a check and she took it."_

There was a moment of silence that took over the room and with slight hesitation she asked, _"Is that what you wanted?"_

_"There was a part of me that wanted her to rip it up and say she wanted to make amends. You know she married and had another kid? A son in fact."_

“ _Ethan, that has nothing to do with you_ ”

“ _If she was going to be a mother to somebody, why couldn’t she be that to me?_ ”

“ _Baby, she missed out on raising the most incredible man I know and that’s something that she’s going to have to live with for the rest of her life_.” 

" _It's just difficult for me to wrap my head around what she did even after twenty five years. I would never do that to our kids._ " He paused acknowledging what he had just said. He had never vocalized his desire for kids. In that instance, he realized he wanted to build a family with her. Another fundamental value that had shifted since dating her. 

In any other instance, she would have relentlessly teased him or pried into the logistics of their future growing family, but the truth of the matter is that she also wanted to have his children. " _Our kids are going to be very lucky to have you as their father. A father who is going to care and protect them with no strings attached. And, you'll be there for all the milestones and mistakes they will make. You are going to love them unconditionally because that's the man you are, there's no doubt in my mind._ "

Ethan briefly nodded and she brushed away a tear that fell down his cheek. She leaned in and pressed her lips against his. He returned the gestured and their lips crashed forming a collusion of emotion. They held each other as Ethan's eyes became drowsier and he began to drift away to sleep. He was home, he knew that for sure. 


End file.
